I was sitting in the front row for Scott Parker’s raw, intense performance nd felt the full impact of  Parker’s troubled, traumatic journey.

For 19 years Parker devoted his whole life to the Hillsong church.  Hie made his main contribution to the church through his talents as a musician and singer. Hillsong treated him as a favourite son. When after 19 years he decided to quit, he didn’t hear one word from them again.

Parker is queer. What is it with so many religions that they are so backward in regards to contemporary and especially sexual mores.?! Hillsong church  do not accept homosexuality and advocates sexuality conversion therapy. In the end Parker could not accept that Hillsong would not  accept him.

Parker tells his story of his time as  a Hillsong Boy with the use of a multimedia screen behind him,  an unspecified interviewer who asks him some very probing questions, and a few call outs from the audience, egging him on to fully break from the shackles of Hillsong. This makes it clear that not withstanding all the things that he tells us, that it is still a struggle for him.

This, once again, proves that getting out of a cult, which Hillsong is clearly identified as, is like breaking free from any kind of addiction, I guess it is a kind of addiction, is a bloody nightmare.

Scott Parker is a very articulate performer and showcases a strong voice and is excellent on the guitar.

His creative team, director Felicity Nicol, sound designer Kathryn Parker and lighting designer Ben Brockman, back him up totally.

I note on the show’s program that the play is still a work in progress and that it is going to be refined further before it will its  premiere production.

HILLSONG BOY played the theatre inside the East Sydney Community and Arts Centre on the  22nd and 23rd March 2024